Feeling Fine
by WitchGirl
Summary: Dave catches a little tiny bug that could be something more...
1. Diagnoses

Feeling Fine  
  
Summary: Dave catches a little tiny bug that could be more...  
  
Disclaimer: own nothing!  
  
A/N: I wrote this really fast and put it up really fast so I didn't really edit it very well. It was a spur of the moment sort of thing, so it may have a few mistakes.  
  
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Chapter 1: Diagnoses  
  
Dave tried to listen as Mark Green came in and out of focus. He blinked. He kept blinking. God I'm tired! he thought. His head throbbed. He'd take some pain killers later.  
"So Kerry asked me to talk to you..." It's so hot in here! Do they ever turn down the heat?  
"Dave! Are you paying attention to me?"  
"You're crystal clear," he lied. He could barley make out a word Mark was saying.  
"Abby... anorexic patient needs... Kerry... Carter, too..."  
"Abby's anorexic and Weaver and Carter need patience? I know about Weaver and Carter, but-"  
"No, you idiot, I said that Abby's anorexic patient needs her medication and Kerry told me that Carter wants a word with you too!"  
"I really need to get some sleep!"  
"You're always asleep Dave!"  
"What time is it?"  
"It's ten to five, but-"  
"My shift ends in ten minutes. Do you mind if I leave early? And would it kill you to turn down the heat a little?"  
"You will stay until your shift ends!" Mark demanded.  
"You sound like Weaver!"  
"You will go see Abby and talk to her about her patient! You will then go see Carter and see what he wants to talk to you about!" before Dave could reply, Carter walked by.  
"Oh, Mark, could I borrow him for a second?"  
"Go ahead!"  
"Thanks. Malucci! Come here!" Dave dragged his feet over to Carter.  
"No need to shout, Carter!"  
"I didn't- Oh, never mind! Look, you've only been back a week, but-"  
"I've been back at work for four days, Carter!"  
"Really, it seems longer for some reason... Anyway, I think you should take a little longer vacation. I asked Kerry and she said it was fine if you come in first thing Wednesday morning," I'd kiss you, but that would be too gross! Dave thought. He needed sleep! He had gotten back from Mali five days ago and he still didn't think he was over the jet lag.  
"I'd hardly call that a vacation. I only went over there because my friend was volunteering to help people over there and she wanted a real doctor to help. And thanks, Carter, but I have to go see-"  
"Abby's patient? I got it."  
"You know, Carter, you can be pretty decent when you want to be," Dave said before he went home.'  
  
Dave did not have a peaceful sleep that night. He tossed and turned and he kept sweating. He woke up and still had a terrible booming headache! Every inch of him was too stiff to move so he just lay there for a while. He decided to get some Tylenol for his headache and so, with his body screaming loudly in protest, he slowly got up and walked to his bathroom. He saw himself in the mirror. He looked horrible. His eyes were puffy and bloodshot and his hair was damp from the sweat. His face gleamed with sweat and he was so hot! He splashed cold water on his face. That looks a little better he thought. He opened his medicine cabinet and got out the Tylenol. He ran his hand through his wet hair and went back to his bed. He still couldn't sleep. A few hours later, he got up again to get a drink of water. When he picked up the glass, he noticed his hand was shaking. The glass fell from his hands.  
"I can't be sick!" his legs felt wobbly under him and wouldn't support his weight. He fell on his knees and held onto the counter.  
"What the heck do I have?" he asked himself but answered it just as quickly. It's probably just a bug. A cold, or the flue, maybe... he got to his feet and made his way back to bed. He stood over it and as much as he couldn't sleep before, his legs failed him, as did the rest of his body and he fell onto the bed unconscious.  
  
"Carter, have you seen Dave?" Kerry asked him when she ran into him in the hall.  
"Huh? Oh, Dave, right! Well, uh, he wasn't looking too good yesterday so I said he could go home early. It was only ten minutes."  
"Yeah, well, his shift's started and he's not phoned in sick yet..."  
"It's Ok, I said I'd take his shift today. I didn't think he'd be up to it after the way he looked yesterday."  
"OK, I just hope you didn't say he could have an extended vacation because I remember I told you no!"  
"Yeah, why would I do that?" Carter asked. He had just saved both their butts. But thanks to Dave, he now had to work two shifts.  
"Perfect!" he wondered how Dave was doing.  
"Oh... Abby!" he said, as she passed.  
"Hm?"  
"Are you off?"  
"Yeah, why?"  
"Could you go check on Dave? I've called, but he won't answer his phone."  
"I heard you gave him the day-"  
"Don't say it! Weaver might hear!"  
"Why are you being so nice to him?"  
"Did you *see* him yesterday?"  
"Yeah... He looked so... I understand. Yeah, maybe I'll go check up on him a bit later."  
"Fine. In the mean time, I have to work two shifts!" Carter started to walk away when Abby's voice made him turn.  
"And Carter?" he looked back at her, "That was really decent of you," he rolled his eyes and went to see a patient.  
  
Abby stopped outside Dave's place around noon.  
"Dave, you home?" she knocked on the door. Now there's a stupid question! He's sick, you idiot! Of course he's home! No one answered. But she did hear a moan.  
"Dave?" she asked, more urgently. She checked to see if the door was unlocked. It wasn't. At least that meant no one had broken in. She didn't see any other sign of forced entry. The only response to her call was another moan.  
"I'm coming in!" she said, and slammed herself against the door. After a few times it opened. She went into his bedroom and saw him laying on his bed, covered in sweat and shaking. He kept mumbling things.  
"Oh my God!" she said when she saw him, "I can only guess how high his fever is!" But what could he have? She backed away from him when she had an idea and covered her mouth. He had returned from Mali five or six days ago. He had a high fever and was sweating like crazy.  
"Oh my God," she said again, hand still over her mouth. She went over to the phone in the next room; she couldn't stay with him. She dialed 911.  
"Hi, we have a situation here. I think this guy has Lassa Fever..."  
  
"Lassa Fever? Abby, no, you can only get that in-" Carter started.   
"Sierra Leone, Senegal, Gambia, Guinea, Ghana, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire and MALI!"  
"But it's carried by a-"  
"Rat."  
"You are good," Carter said, looking at her. They looked through the glass at Dave who was on the hospital bed now, shaking and sweating.  
"But that's contagious!" Mark Green said.  
"It is," Abby said, still looking in at her sick friend, "But it can also fatal."  
  
  
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Please review! I luv feedback! Chapter two will be up soon, how bad do you want it? 


	2. The Needle

Chapter 2: The Needle  
  
"Well what was he doing in Africa in the first place?" Luka asked when he got there.  
"His friend needed help for this charity fund to help the sick people there..." Abby whispered. You had to wear a special suit when you went into Dave's room now and a mask so you didn't breathe the air.  
"I can't sit here and wait!"  
"Well there's not much you can do in there!"  
"Damn it there has to be something! How much ribavirin is he getting?"  
"Calm down Luka, we're doing the best we can," Abby whispered again. She took one of the suits and a mask.  
"Come on. Mark wants me to take a blood sample. I know it's Lassa Fever and so does he. He just doesn't want to know. You can come with me," Luka agreed and put on his suit as well. They entered. Green was already there with Carter and Benton. Cater was basically trying to restrain Dave because he was lashing out at anyone near him. Benton was trying to calm him down and Green was giving him some ribavirin, an antiviral drug used for patients with Lassa Fever.  
"Abby," Mark said when he saw her. Abby took out a needle.  
"You know, we don't have to do this. It's the only thing he could have-"  
"Do it, Lockhart!" Carter ordered. Abby finally agreed and took some of Dave's blood with a needle.  
"Owe! Oh shit!" she swore.  
"What?" Carter asked, worried.  
"I..." she didn't answer. She left quickly and took off her gloves when she was out. She handed the needle to Luka who followed swiftly after her. She ran to a sink and began washing her hand vigorously. The water turned into a thin red liquid.  
"Abby, you didn't just-"  
"Shut up, Luka!" she screamed. She could have kicked herself. What the heck did she do to herself? Luka held her face up so they could see each other's eyes.  
"You have to tell them."  
"No..." a few tears were running down her cheek, "I'm so stupid! I should have waited until Carter had him fully restrained!"  
"Abby, don't worry. If they know about it now... The disease takes a few days to take effect. Go tell them," Abby nodded and took off the suit, "I should get this to be analyzed," He left and as Abby was running down the hall, holding the hand she'd pricked with the needle, she ran into Elizabeth Corday.  
"I've heard. I just got here... What's wrong?" she asked when she saw Abby's tear-stained face. Abby held out her hand to Elizabeth.  
"Mark wanted me to... To take some of Dave's... To take some of Dave's blood. I... The needle went through my glove..." Abby stuttered but she didn't even have to finish.  
"Abby, you didn't!" Elizabeth said, grabbing Abby by the arm abruptly and leading her down the hall. Maybe it was because she knew what was going to happen, but it seemed to Abby that the disease had already started the symptoms. She felt dizzy and things were coming in and out of focus. It was so hot. The last thing she saw was Kerry Weaver before she passed out.  
  
"Abby? Abby can you hear me?" Abby barely heard Carol Hathaway's voice.  
"Who..." Abby gasped. She couldn't feel any part of her body.  
"Abby, you fainted. Your fever isn't that high yet, it's only 99 right now but it will go much higher very soon. Just relax..." she felt a sharp pain in her left arm as Carol made her look to her right. She knew Carol was trying to calm her down. She looked over to her left. Luka Kovac was injecting something into her. Ribavirin, most likely. Kovac looked up at her when he had finished.  
"You will be all right Abby," he said. Abby could feel the sweat on her forehead.  
"How do you know?" she asked. Her speech was unclear to everyone but her, but they understood.  
"The disease is in its early stage. We've gotten the results and you were right, it is Lassa Fever,"  
"And Dave? Will... Will he be... be OK?"  
"Um, Dave? We still aren't sure yet, but we have brought his fever down. Just hang in there, Abby, hang in there," Carter answered. Abby turned her head again and saw him on her left with Carol. She looked again to her right and saw Kovac wasn't alone either. Elizabeth Corday was there as well. They were all in special suits. Abby was scared. Scared for her own life, and scared for Dave's.  



	3. Waiting for a Miracle

Chapter 3: Waiting for a Miracle  
  
"The last thing we need is an outbreak of Lassa Fever at this hospital!" Mark said, walking down the hall with Peter Benton, "Damn it, why the hell did that kid have to go to Mali in the first place!"   
"Did you know that was the exact same thing Luka asked Abby?" Benton asked.  
"Did you know I told Abby to take some blood? She was right, it was unnecessary, but I told her to do it anyway,"  
"I know, Mark, I was there, remember?" they looked in at Dave who was now restrained. Jing-Mei and Carol were trying to bring him out of his delirious state.  
"At least they're quarantined," Benton said.  
"That didn't stop Abby!" Green said.  
"Abby will recover, we know that for a fact. The disease had just gotten into her system. Dave..."  
"May not recover, I know, I know... The disease is spreading fast through his body," they were quiet for a minute, waiting for a miracle.  
  
Carter took Abby's temperature. 101. Up two whole degrees. He sighed. Abby's temperature was supposed to be going down, not up. She was asleep, now, but she was shivering and sweating. He sighed again. Poor Abby. Poor Dave. He hoped that they both recovered fast; it would be too painful for him if they didn't. It was strange to see them both so weak, so helpless. Like young children. You could almost say they look innocent. Even Dave he laughed at that thought. Dave and innocence didn't mix in his mind. Still, it hurt to see either one of them in pain. He wished he could do more and he knew the others did too. Romano was going crazy over the whole situation. He couldn't believe that two of his doctors were down with Lassa Fever, of all things.  
"Dave? Dave! No..." he heard Abby mutter. She was restrained as well, but she still tried to move her arms.  
"Calm down, girl, everything will be all right," Carter whispered. I hope.   
  
"What... What's going... on?" Dave asked, opening his eyes a bit. Jing-Mei and Carol both jumped.  
"Dave! You're back!" Carol said.  
"What am I... doing here? And... What are... these for?" he asked, referring to the restraints. His breaths were heavy and he needed to take breaths between words.  
"Abby brought you in. You have Lassa Fever." Jing-Mei answered.  
"No I... don't. I feel fi-" but he cut himself off with a groan of pain, "I... feel fine," he finished. Jing-Mei smiled.  
"Lassa Fever is a hemorrhagic fever! And it's life threatening, you know that! So don't lie to us." She reminded him.  
"My throat's... sore," Dave said  
"That's a surprise. Did you here me? It's Lassa Fever! Your throat must be inflamed and that means your lungs are too." Jing-Mei told him.  
"Need... water..." he choked. Carol got up to get a glass of water. When she came back, he asked,  
"Why are you... wearing those suits? Scared I'm gonna... hurt you?"  
"You could! Don't you even know what you have?" Carol was surprised.  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah! Lassa... Fever, highly... contagious, I got it," his voice was raspy and almost not there at all. Carol poured some water into his mouth. He smiled at her and thanked her. Then, his eyes rolled and he began to mumble things. Soon, he was swearing and trying to get out of his restraints. Carol left to get Mark and Peter.  
  
"He was awake? Why didn't you tell me?" Mark asked as they jogged to Dave's room.  
"I was going to, but he wanted water and then he... he just fell back into delirium and started swearing and fighting the restraints. He's fought the restraints before but never this hard. It scared me for a minute when he first started," they got into Dave's room and Jing-Mei was giving him a sedative. He had stopped swearing, but was now panting heavily and still fighting the restraints.  
"Check his temperature!"  
"Already did. 105," Jing-Mei said.  
"Damn it!" Mark ran over to him with more Ribavirin.  
"Can't we do anything else?" Carol asked.  
"Not now," Benton told her, "Not anymore. Ribavirin is supposed to be administered within the first six days of the disease... That's when it's most effective anyway. But it's all we got right now, and I'm not even sure it's doing any good. I think we need a miracle."  
  
Revew! Pretty Please! 


	4. Abby's Jaguar

Chapter 4: Abby's Jaguar  
  
A/N: For those of you who are wondering, Lassa Fever is not a fictional disease and it can easily result in deafness, memory loss, and a whole lot more. Somtimes, the deafness and memory loss is permanent, sometimes it isn't. It is mostly found in West Africa and in Sierra Leone and Liberia, it is known that 10-16% of people admitted to the hospitals have Lassa fever. The fatality rate is 50%. Just thought you'd like to know some of the statistcs.  
  
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"Dave? Where are you?" Abby called. She was in a dark rainforest with tangled vines. It was frightening; she wasn't sure she'd ever get out. She cut away the vines with a machete and went deeper into the jungle. She looked around. She could see hungry eyes watching her and heard a low growl.  
"Dave?" she called again and kept going, ignoring the growls and watching eyes. Finally, she came to a river. There was a raft tied to the shore.  
"Come on, Abby, the river's calling," Dave called from the raft.  
"Where are we?" she asked. Dave looked around.  
"It's your dream; you tell me!"  
"That's a big river," she said, looking at it.  
"Sure is," was all he said in reply, "Hurry up before it gets you!"  
"What gets me?"  
"The Jaguar. She's after us."  
"Why?"  
"I think it's my fault."  
"Why?" Abby asked again.  
"Well, I first noticed her when I was in Mali. And I think she followed me back. Now she's developed a taste for Lockhart steak."  
"Are you sure you don't know where we are?" Abby asked.  
"I told you, it's your dream," Dave said, "Where do you think we are?"  
"Well, we're in a rainforest and this river looks big enough to be the Amazon..."  
"Give the girl a prize!" Dave said, "Come on! It's on to your scent now."  
"You want to go down the Amazon River in that?" Abby asked, looking at the scrawny rubber raft.  
"It's all we got. The Jaguar doesn't like the raft. It scares it. But eventually, it'll come," Abby climbed into the raft and Dave began to untie it from the bank.  
"What makes you say that?" she asked.  
"Well, the locals in Mali name the Jaguar Lassa. They say she's a very clever cat gone crazy. She attacks everyone in West Africa. Eats them alive. Now, she want's us. She is smart. There isn't much that scares her and not much to protect yourself from her. But she's afraid of the raft. And a little scared of water. Here we go!" Dave said as he finally untied the rope. They were doing fine for a while but then the boat hit the rapids and the ride became bumpy. Water splashed their faces.  
"Wahoo! Isn't this the life?" Dave shouted over the waves.  
"I guess!" Abby screamed back, clinging to the raft as if her life depended on it. And maybe it did. Suddenly, there was a big rapid and Dave fell out.  
"DAVE!" Abby screamed. He tried to keep his head above water, but with no avail. His head disappeared under the green waters of the amazon.  
"DAVE!" Abby screamed again. The sound of the water died down and the deafening roar of the jaguar cut through all sound.  
Abby awoke her hair damp with perspiration. Carter was surprised by her sudden consciousness and came immediately to her side.  
"How's... Dave?" she gasped, shivering with chills and still sweating.  
"He's alive, but his fever's much higher than yours..." Carter replied. Abby was breathing heavily. It must be getting hard for her to breathe now.   
"I... Feel... Terrible..." Abby said between breaths.  
"It's to be expected," Carter said. A tear rolled down Abby's cheek.  
"Tell me... Dave... isn't... going through... this pain?" she gasped. Carter smiled a week, sad smile.  
"I don't think so," he lied. He didn't know what Dave was feeling but he knew it wasn't comfort.   
"Water..." Abby panted. She almost reminded Carter of a sick and hot little puppy, with her tongue out, catching what water she could from the humid air. Carter agreed and poured water in her mouth.  
"I should go tell them you're awake. They wanted to know when you would be," Carter told her.  
"Don't... Go! The Jaguar..." but that was all she could say. Carter shook his head, sadly.  
"I have to. I'll be right back... I hate to see you this way," he added, and left.  
  
"Abby..." Luka said, looking in at her with a tear in his eye. He put on his mask and went in to see her. She was gasping for air.  
"Luka..." she breathed, a smile appearing on her wet face. Luka smiled back at her. He walked over to her and took her hand in his gloved one.  
"The... Jaguar! It's come... It's coming! It... it wants... me and... Dave,"  
"Shh... Rest," Luka told her, "Carter, where's the Ribavirin?"  
"But we shouldn't-"  
"I just want to know where it is," he said.  
"That's for me to know and you to guess," Carter said, "She doesn't need it right now," Luka closed his eyes and opened them again.  
"I just... I just want to do something more!" he told Carter in frustration.  
"I know how you feel. But we can't let our feelings get in the way of our better judgement. She's getting lots of fluids and she is as comfortable as we can make her. That's the best we can do right now."  
"Why is it working so fast? It shouldn't be working this fast!"  
"I don't know. Maybe the cells are advanced, but... I don't know. It just is, I guess... But you're right. It's like nothing I've ever seen before. It's almost as if this virus has it in for Abby Lockhart."  
"DON'T SAY THAT!" Luka turned and shouted at Carter.  
"Whoa, calm down! It was a thought! Relax!" Luka nodded.  
"I'm sorry, Carter. It's just... Abby and Dave are both down and..."  
"I understand. You're touchy. I get it..." they both looked at Abby who was still speaking about a jaguar and was almost unaware that they were only half-listening.  
"The poor girl..."  
  
"Abby... Get away! Abby..." Mark watched as Dave kept screaming Abby's name. Carter came in.  
"How long has he been like this?"  
"I don't know... A while... He keeps calling her name. It's almost as if he knows she's sick too," he replied.  
"Stay away... Lassa... back... No..." they looked on sadly. It was late at night now, but no one wanted to leave. No one could leave, not with them like that.  
"Isn't it funny how life works?" Carter asked.  
"Yeah..." Mark agreed.  
"Sometimes, I watch them and wish I was the sick one instead..." Mark swallowed hard and turned to Carter.  
"Carter... His fever. It won't go down and the fever cells keep multiplying faster than his body can fight them off... It's moving to his head..."  
"No..." Carter shook his head, not taking his eyes off of Dave.  
"You've heard what Lassa Fever can do... Even people who've recovered from it. Some suffer deafness, memory loss... anything, really. And sometimes, it can turn into Encephalitis... Comas..."  
"No..." Carter said again. Mark continued.  
"If there's no change for the better, he looks like he's on that road..."  
  
Carter went back to Abby and Luka.  
"How is he?" Luka whispered.  
"... Not good... Mark thinks... Encephalitis..." he didn't need to say any more. Luka shook his head and looked over at Abby who was staring right back at them.  
"The Jaguar's finally got him, hasn't it?" Abby asked normally without gasping for air. And with that, her eyes closed and she fell into another restless nightmare.  



	5. The Long Way Home

Chapter 5: The Long Way Home  
  
A/N: I would like to thank every source that gave me an idea for this story. Movies, books, and doctahmillie for helping me with it too. But this isn't the end yet. I think the next part will be or if not, then the one after that.  
  
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The days turned into weeks. Abby seemed to have little change to her condition. They had brought her fever down a degree, which was good. But Dave seemed to be getting worse every minute. Mark's prediction of Encephalitis was beginning to come true. Everyone at the hospital didn't say much. Dave and Abby were never left alone in a room. Luka never left Abby's side anymore. After a few more weeks, Abby's fever did die down to 99.5, which was very good. Dave wasn't doing as well. After about a month or so, he fell into a coma.  
"What day... is it?" Abby asked Luka one day.  
"June eighth. You have been sick for a very long time."  
"Is... Dave..."  
"Dave is... stable," was the best he could bring himself to tell her. It was strange, though, because Luka almost felt a bit jealous of Dave. Every time Abby was awake she would ask about him. But soon, Luka would shake off that feeling and remind himself that Abby and Dave were both sick and needed their help. Abby had stopped muttering about the jaguar she'd seen and she rarely went back into a state of delirium any more. It felt good that they were making progress with her, but when you felt that achievement, one walk by Dave's room was all you needed to take that feeling away. One look at his sallow, damp face could make you almost cry. This hospital and this crew had seen many cases like this but never had there been such a dense atmosphere of sorrow.   
Almost never Carter reminded himself one day. That fateful February day, how could he forget? However, this was almost more. Maybe it was because they had had that momentous memory in their past or maybe it was because it was longer, but it almost seemed more. But Carter wouldn't let himself believe that. Nothing, in his mind, could be a sadder day. But maybe he was wrong. For no one at the hospital knew the fate of either of Dave or Abby anymore. Abby was in such a critical state that any moment her fever could peek again. But Dave was even more crucial. For him, any day could be the day his heart finally stopped beating after all those years of faithful service. But any day could also be the day he would wake from his long slumber. Everyone was edgy and jumped at anyone who spoke to them.  
Carter sipped what must have been his fourth cup of coffee that day, standing outside Dave's room, just watching. The fever was still in his blood and so it was still not very safe for them to enter unless clad in the proper wear. Elizabeth appeared by his side, sipping a cup of coffee herself.  
"Time doesn't heal *all* wounds, does it?" she said, "What's troubling you? I know it's not Dave or Abby. I mean, I can see you're worried about them both, but there's something else... What is it?"  
"Well... I don't know. I just... I just feel that if I lose either one of them, I won't be able to take it. I've lost too much in my life already."  
"I know you have. But you're not the only one who's had a hard life. We've all lost at least something at one time in our life or another. But we can get through this together. For one thing we have, at least now, is each other," Carter looked at his friend long and hard. He realized she was right. They would get through this together; they would all get through this helping each other. He knew that his friends would help him get through what ever problems he had and he would do his best to help them. Suicide, drugs... Those were all easy answers; they're the easy ways out. Carter decided to take the long way home. And his friends were coming with him.  
  
Abby closed her eyes as she felt the warm liquid flow down her irritated throat. It hurt slightly, but she was happy to taste food again, even if it was just soup. It was another few weeks since Carter and Lizzy's discussion. Abby's recovery was speeding up, but not without taking it's toll. Abby had now lost almost all of her hearing and they didn't know how long it was for. She opened her eyes and looked at Luka Kovac, love easily visible in her smile and her eyes. Luka smiled back at her. He didn't care she'd lost her hearing. It could have been much worse. Much worse. Like Dave Luka thought silently.  
"Dave?" Abby said and Luka looked at her as if she read his mind. Then, he realized she was asking about him. Not many people at the hospital knew sign language and neither did Abby and so it became difficult to talk to Abby sometimes, unless you had a pen and paper, which Luka always carried now. But he was already taking classes in sign language in case he would need them later.  
"Um..." Luka said, fumbling for a pen. He scrawled a quick 'no change' and showed her. She sighed. When she was able to handle it, they had told her about Dave's coma.  
For Abby, you didn't really need a mask or suit anymore. Her fever had returned to normal and she had been moved out of quarantine. The only traces of the disease were her continuous weakness, fatigue, and of course her hearing loss. The road to recovery was hard, almost painful for her, but she told herself every minute, every hour, every day that she was going to get through this. She hated being so tired and the feeling of helplessness always annoyed her. She could barely keep her head up but it was worth it to see the eyes of who ever was with her. She felt as if she hadn't seen any of them for years and was glad to see their faces, especially Luka's. But the faces didn't have the same smile or the same look in the eyes. Something was different. Something had hurt them and scared them; scarred them very hard and deep and left a wound that may never heal. She had seen this before. Once before. But that was a long time ago and the event was long past. But the residue of the accident still held in their eyes and their hearts, the memory of a close friend, lost long ago but never forgotten. Never forgotten. And she knew that this incident would never be forgotten either. Some things can effect the way people look at the world. They could even be as small as a single sentence whispered by a friend. That single sentence, that one little phrase, can change a person's life. Or it could be something that happened. Something like this. She knew that if Dave ever woke up, he would look at the world differently as will all the others in the hospital. As will she. An amicable hand on her shoulder drew Abby from her thoughts. She looked up and noticed it was Luka's hand, but now, someone else was with him. She recognized him as John Carter. She noticed him sigh, even though she couldn't hear it. He blinked and began speaking to Luka. It was strange because to Abby, it was as if they were speaking in another language. She looked on, curiously, trying to see if she could teach herself to lip read.  
"She seems happy," Carter said to Luka.  
"She does. She keeps asking about Dave..."  
"Who isn't? Everyone's asking somebody about him. And that somebody isn't always the people you see and hear- oops, sorry- see, at least, every day," his eyes moved upwards with his head, gesturing at the ceiling. Luka understood.  
"How many days has it been?" he knew Abby had been asking this.  
"Uh... I lost count. What day is it today?" Luka smiled.  
"June 26."  
"I thin he went in the coma in April, didn't he?"  
"Yeah..."  
"Hmm... Around April 23, right? That'd be a little over two months, now..." Luka and Carter both turned to Abby who was watching them and concentrating hard and moving her lips quietly mouthing words. She stopped when she noticed they were looking at her and smiled a bit embarrassed. Carter and Luka chuckled a little, for the first time in two months. Luka wrote a quick note to her saying 'We were discussing Dave's condition. He's been in a coma for two months.' She read it and nodded sadly. A tear formed in her eye.  
"Don't wanna be deaf!" she tried to say, "Wanna hear your voice." Luka dried the tear in her eye. Luka pulled her in and gave her a comforting hug.  
"You will hear again, Abby, I promise..."  



	6. Awakened Senses

Chapter 6: Awakened Senses  
  
A/N: Last chapter. PLEASE REVIEW! Or you may come down with Lassa Fever yourselves...  
  
Carter was falling asleep in his chair. His eyelids were getting really heavy. Once, he could have sworn he heard Dave say something like "Carter wake up!" but it was most likely his imagination for when he opened his eyes, he was just as pale as ever and lifeless in his never-ending sleep. It was almost as if he were dead apart from the slow heartbeat in his chest. But this was worse then Dave being dead. This was Dave being alive and no one being able to do anything about it! It was so frustrating!  
"Carter?" Peter said when he entered. Carter looked up, eyes barely open, "Come on, let me get you some coffee."  
"But... Dave-"  
"Will be right here when you get back! Come on, let's go," and so Carter agreed. When Carter left, Dave stirred and shook his head...  
  
Abby woke up with a start.  
"Dave!" she cried. She woke up Luka who had fallen asleep.  
"Dave?" Luka asked looking at Abby suspiciously.  
"Is he awake?" Abby asked.  
"Not yet..." Luka said, then wrote it down.  
"But... I had a dream..." Luka wrote a swift 'it was just a dream, Abby.' A sad look appeared on Abby's face.  
"Dream..." she sighed. Suddenly, Luka heard Kerry Weaver scream for someone. It was a surprised scream, but it didn't sound very frightened. In fact, it didn't sound scared at all. Luka communicated to Abby that he need to see what it was about. When he got to where he heard the scream from, he noticed it was Dave's room and Carter and Peter were already in the room. Then, Luka saw Dave sitting up in bed and rubbing his head. He ran in. Jing-Mei and Carol soon joined them.  
"Oh my God he's awake!" Jing-Mei exclaimed. Dave kept shaking his head and blinking.  
"Wow... Everything's all... Fuzzy..." he said rubbing his head, "Why is everybody looking at me all funny?" he asked, looking around at the surprised and joyful expressions on everyone's faces.  
"Dave... How are you feeling?" Mark asked.  
"I feel... A little queasy... but... other then that... I feel like I haven't seen you guys in months! Wait..." he said, looking around at and past the doctors, "What am I doing here?" Everyone looked at each other not knowing what to say, "Why is everyone acting as if I just came back from the dead?"  
"Dave... for weeks you were really sick... You came down with Encephalitis and then you fell into a coma," Carter told him.  
"A coma?" but then, Dave remembered. He remembered the night he couldn't sleep. He had had a migraine and he was so hot. Then, he remembered waking up and seeing Carol and Jing-Mei. Then he remembered the dreams. They were dreams haunted by a big cat. In them, he was running away from it, trying to hide from it. Abby had been in his dreams. In his most recent dream, he remembered deciding not to run from the cat any more. He remembered deciding it was time to fight. He never did see who won the fight, but if he could guess, he would have said he did.  
"A coma..." he said again. Somehow, he also remembered the pain. And when he thought about it, it all came rushing back again, "Oh..." he said, lying back down on the bed.  
"Rest, you need it," Benton said. And Dave did so with no objection. When they all left Dave's room they all felt much happier than they had been half an hour before if not a little tired. They were smiling again and laughing. Luka felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around and smiled at what met his eyes. He saw Abby in her hospital gown with a sad smile on her face. Her hair was slightly matted and her eyes a little tired, but he was happy to see her. Luka pointed in at Dave.  
"Awake?" Abby said. Luka nodded. He knew Abby didn't like to speak much any more because she couldn't hear what she was saying, but she did know what she wanted to say. Abby's sad smile turned into a truly happy one.  
"I'm glad," she said, "I knew it!" then, she looked down and her smile faded again. Luka sighed. There could be only one thing troubling her now. He held her face in his hand and looked into her eyes.  
"You will hear again!" he said and Abby smiled almost as if she heard him.  
  
As days and weeks past, Luka's words began to come true and it surprised everyone. Abby was beginning to respond to more and more tones. In about five to six weeks, almost all her hearing returned. And every day, Dave became stronger and stronger again. One day, he went to visit Abby.  
"Hi Dave!" she said when she saw him, "How are you feeling?"  
"I'm feeling just fine. You?" Dave still felt he had to speak a little louder with Abby and maybe that was true.  
"Me?" Abby asked, though she heard him, "I am feeling fine too! I'm glad to see you alive again, Malucci!" she said.  
"Yeah, and it's good to know you can hear what I'm saying, too..." Dave muttered something under his breath.  
"Sorry, what?" Abby asked. Dave smiled.  
"Nothing, just... Oh a stupid dream I had..."  
"What did you say?" Abby was interested.  
"Well, I said I'm glad she didn't get you Abby," Dave said. Abby looked at him. Was she dreaming again?  
"And I'm glad to see the Jaguar didn't get you either," Abby tried. Dave looked at her suspiciously.  
"How did you..."  
"I honestly do not know... But one thing I know for sure is I hope that everything stays just fine for a least a little while longer."  
"Yeah, and I hope everyone feels fine too," they smiled at each other for a moment in silence  
  
THE END!  
  
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